Clashes erupted Saturday night in The Hague at the end of a demonstration against the Dutch government’s new measures to deal with the resurgence of the Covid-19 pandemic in the aftermath of the “violence” that erupted in Rotterdam, where 51 people were arrested and many injured.
In a popular area of The Hague where the Dutch government is based, on Saturday night several hundred people threw stones and various objects at police and set fire to bicycles, while the authorities made at least one arrest.
The Netherlands reopened a partial lockdown last week to deal with a Covid-19 outbreak, with a series of health restrictions particularly affecting the catering industry, with restaurants being forced to close at 20:00. The government now plans to ban entry to certain areas for the unvaccinated, including bars and restaurants.
In Amsterdam, a similar demonstration against the measures that was scheduled to take place yesterday Saturday was canceled by the organizers of the United We Stand after Friday’s chaos in Rotterdam.
Crowds of several hundred rioters set fire to cars, threw fireworks and threw stones at police during a protest Friday night. Police responded with warning fire and the use of pressurized water pumps.
Rotterdam Mayor Ahmed Abutaleb described Friday’s incidents as an “orgy of violence”.
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